Saturday, February 17, 2018

Yesterday, I discovered that Audible has an original true crime podcast series called 'West Cork' AND this podcast sounds amazing!! Read the following summary about 'West Cork' from Audible:

This much we do know: Sophie Toscan du Plantier was murdered days before Christmas in 1996, her broken body discovered at the edge of her property near the town of Schull in West Cork, Ireland. The rest remains a mystery.

Gripping, yet ever elusive, join the real-life hunt for answers in the year’s first not-to-be-missed, true-crime series. Investigative journalist Sam Bungey and documentarian Jennifer Forde guide listeners through the brutal, unsolved murder and the tangled web of its investigation, while introducing an intricate cast of characters, a provocative prime suspect, and a recovering community whose story begs to be heard.

There have already been over 2,400 ratings for 'West Cork' on Audible from audio listeners with an overall average rating of 4.2 stars. Additionally, I've learned that 'West Cork' is FREE to download from Audible through May 9, 2018. Plus, 'West Cork' offers an online interactive feature on their website as well. Pretty cool stuff, right!?I've already download 'West Cork' and look forward to listening to it.

Audible recently designated $5 million to bankroll the work of 15 up-and-coming playwrights, who will write audio plays with no more than two characters. This new format means that you can swap out your evening podcast for a full-length play you've purchased through the Audible platform. Although the inaugural class of artists was "chosen by an advisory board of judges," according to the Observer, The L.A. Times says that "[f]uture Audible commissions will be announced on a rolling basis . . . relying on an open-submission process in conjunction with input from an advisory board."Seventy-three percent of the inaugural class of Audible playwrights are women and people of color.

Tuesday, February 13, 2018

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl. Top Ten Tuesday was originally created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.With Valentine's Day happening tomorrow, I thought I'd share a few of my favorite hot and steamy romances!

It’s rare to see senior women on TV at all, let alone dating, doing drugs, running a business, and having fun with their friends. If you’re hungry for more content like Grace and Frankie, you may be out of luck on the small screen—but we’ve rounded up seven novels whose over-70 protagonists do more than just reminisce and wait to die. If you are, know, or just want to become a fierce old lady, start here.

I found myself loving the title of the above article and also curious as to which 7 books listed in the article. I will be adding a few of them to my ever growing reading wishlist. I am a middle aged woman myself. Although, I rarely define myself as having reached middle age.... However, I digress. I mainly wanted to write that I feel like women, especially elderly woman, are not portrayed very often in leading roles in novels. I think it's important to see more older women featured more prominently in novels in a positive light. I say this because woman in the baby boomer generation (ages 51-69) and older, make up a large sector of the population. So it would make sense to see more novels with positive, elderly women role models as leading characters. I think it is important to celebrate the wisdom older women have to offer.

Sunday, February 11, 2018

I've had the hardback edition of Love In A Nutshell by Janet Evanovich & Dorien Kelly in my collection since 2013!! I purchased Love In A Nutshell from the remainder section at a big box store. This book has been sitting around too long in my 'to be read' pile, so I finally decided to read it this month in honor of Valentine's Day and all things L-O-V-E related!Well, I wasn't overly impressed with this novel. It's not like I loved or hated this book, but I felt like Love In A Nutshell by Janet Evanovich & Dorien Kelly was easy reading... It's pure fluff, plain and simple!!Essentially, Love In A Nutshell by Janet Evanovich & Dorien Kelly is the perfect beach read/novel to read while traveling/on vacation if you enjoy reading romance novels with a touch of mystery. Love In A Nutshell by Janet Evanovich & Dorien Kelly has the predictable ending with mediocre characters.The following is a plot summary for Love In A Nutshell by Janet Evanovich & Dorien Kelly from Amazon:

Number one bestselling author Janet Evanovich teams up with award-winning author Dorien Kelly to deliver a sparkling novel of romantic suspense, small-town antics, secretive sabotage, and lots and lots of beer.

Kate Appleton needs a job. Her husband has left her, she's been fired from her position as a magazine editor, and the only place she wants to go is to her parents' summer house, The Nutshell, in Keene's Harbor, Michigan. Kate's plan is to turn The Nutshell into a Bed and Breakfast. Problem is, she needs cash, and the only job she can land is less than savory.Matt Culhane wants Kate to spy on his brewery employees. Someone has been sabotaging his company, and Kate is just new enough in town that she can insert herself into Culhane's business and snoop around for him. If Kate finds the culprit, Matt will pay her a $20,000 bonus. Needless to say, Kate is highly motivated. But several problems present themselves. Kate despises beer. No one seems to trust her. And she is falling hard for her boss.

Can these two smoke out a saboteur, save Kate's family home, and keep a killer from closing in…all while resisting their undeniable attraction to one another? Filled with humor, heart, and loveable characters, Love in a Nutshell is delicious fun.

Love In A Nutshell by Janet Evanovich & Dorien Kelly is an okay read. I am giving Love In A Nutshell by Janet Evanovich & Dorien Kelly a rating of 2 stars out of 5 stars.Until my next post, happy reading!

In our habitual fantasies, writers do nothing but sit at small café tables, sometimes meeting with their friends, other times gazing wistfully into a pint or swirling an espresso before they scribble down their latest brilliant thought. It may have worked for Hemingway, but I’m here to tell you: that’s not usually what writing looks like. But hey, it’s Friday. So what better time to indulge our daydreams and salivate over a few of the bars and cafés that famous writers frequented in days of yore? I mean, writerly fantasies aside, I wouldn’t mind reading for a while in any one of these. Of course, this is nowhere near a complete list of every place a famous writer ever drank—not least because in the interest of avoiding the New York/Paris/Dublin trap, I’ve limited the choices to one per city—so feel free to add on to the list. Now, without any further ado: 35 literary watering holes in 35 cities. Which one would you visit?

If you’ve ever followed along with Reese Witherspoon’s book club, then you already know that the star loves a good book. And yesterday, Witherspoon announced on Instagram that she’s teaming up with Disney and A Wrinkle in Time to support an important cause: providing books to children in need.

Want to help the cause? Witherspoon explains how easy it is in the caption on her post: “Post your #shelfie with the hashtag #MagicOfStorytelling and @Disney will donate a new book to a child in need through @firstbookorg ! ” It’s that easy—and it won’t cost you anything to contribute. If you're wondering what a shelfie is, check out #MagicOfStorytelling for inspiration. It typically means a photo of a beautifully styled shelf (and there are plenty of those that have been submitted), but if you don’t want to spend time revamping your bookshelves, don’t worry—the official entry rules ask for a selfie taken with a book. And it doesn’t have to be A Wrinkle in Time, but any title of your choosing. Then, just remember to tag it #MagicOfStorytelling, and Disney will donate a book to First Book, a non-profit that provides books and other educational resources to kids in need.

So, let's hop to it and post our selfies on Instagram with the requisite book in the photo and appropriate hashtags in the post to make sure a child in need has a book to read!

Followers

Follow by Email

About Me

Welcome to my book blog, Captivated Reader!! I hope you enjoy reading my posts. Please feel free to leave me relevant comments on my blog posts. Happy reading!!
~As an FYI to my blog readers, I DO NOT make money when promoting book blasts. I only share books on my blog that I think readers make enjoy reading themselves. Nor to I belong to any affiliates programs.~